Therapeutic apparatus



May 20, 1941. l. w. MOREY ETAL 2,243,013

THERAP'EUTIC APPARATUS 'v -Filed Feb. 27, 1939 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 lloyd ZIK/1107195 9L Iaeft A. uch lNVENTOR-S ATTOR N EYS jfs THERAPEUTIG APPARATUS' Filed Feb. 27, A1935) 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 ATTORNEYS May 20, 1941v 1 w. MoREY r-:rAL

THERAPEUTIC APPARATUS Filed Feb. 27, 1939' 4 sheets-sheet 3 INVENTORS A w m May 20, 1941. Y l. w. MOREY ErAL 2,243,013

THERAPEUTIC V'APPARATUS I Filed Feb. 27, '19:59 4 sheets-sheet 4 e I Jagd Wfarey di 'z/ere INVENTOR ATTOR N EYS Patented May 20, 1.941

2,243,013 THRAPEUTIC APPARATUS Lloyd Morey and Everett A. Buck, l\Iillinocket,-Maine Anplication February 27, 1939, serial No. 258,832

6 Claims.

Our invention relates to therapeutic apparatus.

An important object of our invention is to provide an apparatus adapted to be used by physicians whereby a deep-seated mechanical massage or vibratory movement may be imparted to selected portions of the body of a patient to promote the circulation of the blood and lymphatic fluids of the body.

Another object of our invention is the provision of a roller means attached tothe apparatus and actuated laterally in a vibratory manner, and adapted to have an axial rotation of the roller simultaneously imparted thereto.

Yet another object of our invention is to provide an apparatus adapted to be used by physicians whereby pressure is alternately applied to different portions of .the body, thereby causing a to-and-fro movement of the tissues and fluids of the body to stimulate and lpump the blood and lymph iiuids forward -in Itheir natural channels.

Still another object of o ur invention is the provision of an apparatus adapted to be used by physicians whereby the speed of the vibratory movement may be manually selectively varied.

A further object of our invention ,is to provide an apparatus adapted to be used by physicians that includes a support for the body of a patient .that may be angularly adjusted with respect to the horizontal.

A still further object of 'our inven-tion is the provision of an apparatus that is comparatively Figure 2 is a transverse sectional view, taken on the line 2-2 of Figure 1,v

Figure 3 is a vertical sectional view, taken on the line 3-3 of Figure 1, t Figure 4 is a transverse sectional view, taken on the line 4-4 of Figure 3,

Figure 8 is a. perspective view of the main frame of thedevice.

In the accompanying drawings, wherein for the purpose of illustration, is shown a preferred embodiment of our invention, the numeral- I0 designates a pair of spaced cylinders having the lower ends thereof screw threaded to receive the base caps II, and the upper ends thereof enclosed by a Itransverse end Wall I2. The wall I2 is provided with an annular recess I3 that force the oil from the reservoir into the pistonsA I0 `through the pipe iittings, designated generally by the numeral .22, The ttings 22 include a branch 23 leading from the impeller to the lower portion of one of thecylinders and communicating therewith. A cut-off valve 24 isinsertedin the branch to control the iiow of oil to the cylinder. A second branch 25 leads from the impeller to the other of the cylinders, and is similarly provided with a cut-off valve 26 to control the ow of oil thereto. It may be seen that when the valves 24 and 26 are open, oil will be distributed to each of the cylinders to hydraulically elevate the pistons therein; or that by closing the valve in either of the branches 23 or 25, the oil will flow through the other branch to hydraulically elevate the piston in communication therewith,

p and that the first-mentioned piston will remain in the initial position.

'The frame 3,1 is of substantially rectangular formation in plan, y and comprises a main frame 38 having transverse braces39 and 40 the ends of which extend beyond the sides 44 and 52 of the frame and the. extremities thereof depend therefrom a substantial distance, as illustrated 4in Figures 1 and 8. 'I'he cross braces 39 'and 40 are connected by longitudinally extending braces 4I and 42 spaced inwardly from the sides 44 and 52 of the frame, and a web 43 bridges the braces 4I and 42 adjacent the cross brace 40. The longitudinal sides `of the frame 38 are formed adjacent the end 59 with depending ears 60 to which the links 6| are pivotally attached. The free ends of the links 6| are connected by a transversely extending shaft 52 and the middle portion of the shaft is received by the bracket 33 carried by the free end of the subjacent piston rod |6. Adjacent the end 56 of the frame the longitudinal sides 44 and 52 are formed with depending ears E1 which are connected by a transversely extending shaft 68, The middle portion of the shaft is received by the bracket 33 carried by the free end 4of the other of the piston rods I6.

An equalizer unit is disposed interjacent the cylinders I9 and includes a pair of uprights 2l' and 28 which have horizontally aligning openings adjacent their top to receive a cross bar 29, the ends of which extend beyond the uprights and have the arms 30 and 3| fastened thereto. The arms are maintained from rotating independently of the cross bar by the set screws 32 and form, in effect, an .elongated U-shaped bracket. Link members 35 and 36 are pivotally attached at one end to the extremities of the arms 39 and 3|. A collar 63 is secured to the shaft 92 by the set screw 69 and the link 36 is pivotally attached to the laterally projecting boss 65 by the bolt 13. The collar 69 is secured against rotation on the shaft 60 by the'set screw 10, and the link 35 is Vpivotally attached to the laterally extending boss 1| by means of the bolt 12.

The supports 21 and 28, cross bar 29, arms 39 and 3| and links 35 and 39 comprise an equalizer, or stabilizing unit which, when attached to the piston rods, prevents either of the said piston rods from being elevated faster than Vthe other,

` and assures the horizontal alignment of the upper ends of the rods at all times. It is obvious that the equalizer will only be connected to the piston rods at such times as it is desired to evenly and simultaneously elevate or lower the pistons, If it is desired to raise one but not the other of Athe pistons it will be necessary to disconnect the equalizer from the piston rods by removing the bolts 12 and 13. The link members 35 and 36 and arms 30 and 3| may then be lowered into engagement with fthe floor or other supporting object.

The side 94 of the frame 39 has a pair of depending arms and 49 formed integrally therewith and, pivotally attached between the ends thereof, is the head of a T-shaped lever 51. The depending vshank 48 of the lever is rigidly se-s cured to a motor housing 49, and pendulously supports the same from the frame. The lower portion of the motor housing is formed with an ear 50 to which is pivotally attached a lever arm 5|. The side 52 of the frame 38 has an arm 53 formed thereon and depending therefrom to receive the free end of the lever 5i through the opening 55. 'Ihe lever 5| terminates exteriorly of the arm 53 in a laterally extending handle 55. The opening 54 has an upwardly extending rtooth 55 which engages with the coacting teeth 51 formed in the lower edge of the lever 5|, and a spring clip 5t? has one end bolted, or otherwise secured, to the arm 53 and the other end thereof frictionally engages the upper edge of the lever to maintain the teeth of the same in engagement with the tooth 5G, It may thus be seen that the motor 49 may be pendulously positioned with respect spring 86 is interposed between the pulley and the head 89. The inner part 81 of the pulley 85 is fixedly secured to the shaft to prevent a displacement thereof axially along the shaft, and the outer part 88 of the pulley is constantly urged toward the inner part 81 by-means of the re, silient action of the coil spring 86. Connecting the drive shaft of the motor 49 and the pulley f85 is a V-belt 89, by which rotation ofthe worm is effected- 'Ihe ends of the tubular shaft 19 are supported by arms 90 and 9| which depend from the frame 38. The end 92 of the tubular shaft carries an inner disk 92 the periphery of which is provided with a peripheral notch 95. A solid shaft 90 is mounted for rotation within the hollow shaft 19 V and the extremities thereof extend a substantial distance beyond the hollow shaft. The end 91 of the solid shaft has an outer disk 98 xedly secured thereon and the periphery ofthe disk is similarly provided with diametrically opposed notches 99 and |00. A key |0| is'pivoted to the inner face of the inner disk 92. The key is formed with an outwardly extending tongue |02 of suicient length to extend through the notch 95 of the inner disk and the peripheral notch |00 in the outer disk 98. The key is provided rearwardly of the fulcrum with a shank |03 under which is seated a coil spring |04 which is sufliciently resilient in its action to hold the key normally engaged in the notches when once so positioned, but will permit the manual disengagement of the key with the disk 98 when desired. The end |05 of the shaft 96 carries an inner disk |96 thereon for rotation therewith, and the hub |01 thereof abuts the end of the hollow shaft 19. The periphery of the inner disk is formed with a notch I0. The solid shaft 19 extends beyond the inner disk |06, and a loosely mounted outer disk is carried thereon. The washers |2 on the extremity of the solid shaft permit the outer disk to have a free independent rotation on the shaft, but prevents the same from being axially displaced along the shaft. The inner face of the inner disk |06 is similarly provided with a key ||3 which is adapted to engage either of the diametrically opposed recesses H9 and ||5 in the outer disk Coil spring H5 is positioned between the key and the inner face of the disk to normally hold the outwardly extending end of the key in engagement with the notches in the disk I l The ends of the transverse braces 39 and 49 extend beyond the longitudinal sides 443 and 52 of the frame 38 and the extremities thereof depend downwardly therefrom to terminate a substantial distance above the gear housing 19. Cylindrical drums ||1 and ||8 are mounted for rotation between the ends of the braces 39 and 49. The drums are formed with laterally extending end walls |9 and |20 which carry longitudinally extending bars |2| in spaced parallelism with the drums. The disk98 has an outwardly extending boss |22 adjacent its periphery,

and pivoted thereto is one end of a flexible strap |23. The opposite end of the strap Vis ,wound about the drum I |8 and securely fastened there-4 to. The outer disk on the end of the shaft 96, is provided with an outwardly extending boss |24. 'I'he flexible strap |25 has one end pivotally attached to the boss |24, and its other end thereof is wound around and secured to the drum ||1. The braces 4| and 42 of the frame 38 have bearing blocks |26 bolted or otherwise secured to their underside, and the levers |21 are xedly secured to the outer end of the small shafts |28 which extend through the said bearing blocks. Levers |29 are xedly secured to the inner end of the shafts |28 and are formed with an upwardly extending shank |30 and a lower shank |40 which extends outwardly and downwardly therefrom. The coil springs |4| are attached to the extremity of the shanks |40, and the other ends thereof are fastened to shanks 14' extending laterally from the supporting arm As hereinbefore described, when the equalizing linkage, comprising the cross bar 29, and links 30, 3|, 35 and 36, are secured to the collars 69 and 63 by the bolts 12 and 13, the bed frame |45 will be raised in an even horizontal position. However, if the bolts 12 and 13, which connect f the linkage' to the piston rods, are removed so 14. The depending extremities of thetransverse brace 39 have pulleys |42 extending inwardly erly accommodate the cables |43. Cables |43 have their outer ends wound about and secured to the drums H1 and ||8, and the inner ends thereof are attached to the lower extremity of the lever |21.

The frame 38 has rollers |44 mounted for rotation at spaced intervals along its upper surface, and the bed frame |45 is formed with lon gitudinally extending runners |46 which are adapted to rest on the rollers 44. The spring |48 has one end attached to the arm |41 depending from the.bed frame, and the other end thereof is secured to an upwardly extending flange |49 of the frame 38. The spring |48 will permit the frame |45 to have a longitudinal sliding movement'with respect to the frame 38, but the resilient action thereof will return the bed frame to the initial position after each longitudinal displacement. The shanks |^of the levers |29 have pusher rods |50 fastened to the end thereof in a manner whereby the outer ends of the A pusher rods bear against the depending abutments |5| formed on the bed frame |45.

The upper surface of the frame is provided with a pad |52 which will comfortably accommodate the recumbent form of a patient. Straps |53 and |54 have their lower ends secured to the rods |2| and extend upwardly through elongated slots |55 and |56 in the bed frame. The straps are coupled above the frame |45 by a suitable buckle connection, |51. One end of the bed frame |45 is formed with an upwardly extending flange |58 to which is riveted, or other- Wise secured, a pair of straps |59 to receive the feet of the patient and the other end of the bed frame has a pillow |60, or the like, fastened thereto to accommodate the head of the patient.

The operation of our device isasfollows:

The patient desiring treatments is plac'ed on the bed frame |45 in a recumbent position, and the straps |53 and |54 are pulled tightly around his waist to securely hold himon the frame. If it is found to be necessary, such additional straps may be attached to the frame as are required to hold the patient securely positioned thereon, or adjustable straps may be secured to foreign objects in close proximity to the -device to permit the patient to grasp the same in a manner to steady and brace himself. 'I'he adjustable straps therefrom in angular relation therewith to prop- When the motor 49 is energized it will impart rotation to the worm 8| through the V-shaped belt 89. The shaft 82 of the worm carries a split pulley, the outer -half of which is maintained in pressed relation with the inner half by means of the coil spring 86. If the motor 49 is manually moved closer to the shaft l82 by means of the hand lever 51, the split sections of the pulleys will move toward each other to increase the ratio between the pulley diameters and to decrease the speed of rotation ofthe shaft 82. If, however, the motor 49 is moved away from the shaft 82 and locked in this position by the interlocking of the teeth 51 and tooth 56 in the lever arm and supporting arm respectively, the belt will cause the pulley sections to spread apart against the resilient action of the spring 86 to decrease the ratio between the pulley diameters and to increase the speed of rotation of the shaft 82. This arrangement provides a convenient and expeditious means for progressively increasing or` decreasing the speed of the mecha-i nism hereinafter described.

The worm 8| coacts with a circular gear on the tubular shaft 19 to rotate the same. The inner disk 92 is keyed to one end of the tubular shaft 19 and consequently will" rotate in accordance with the worm gear 8|. If the key |0| on the disk 92 is' inserted in one of the notches 99 or |00 in the outer disk 98, the rotation of the inner disk will be transmitted. to the said outerA disk. Inasmuch as the outer disk is keyed to the end of the inner solid shaft 96, the` inner disk |06 on'the opposite end of the shaft will be caused to rotate in direct ratio'to the disk 92. If thekey ||0 is theny positioned to engage either, of the notches |'|4 and .|I5' in the outer disk the rotation of this disk will be indirect relation with the rotation of the disk |06. The bosses |22 and |24 on the outer disks 98 and act as eccentrics for the straps |23 and |25, and as the outer disks rotate the pull of the straps on the drums ||1 and ||8 will causethe same to rotate axially. As the bosses on the outer disks rotate past the lowest point, the pull on the drums will be released to permit the coil springs |.4| to rotate the drums back to the initial position. 'Ihe springs |4| transmit action through the levers |29, shafts |28, levers |21 and cables |43. 'I'he cables are wrapped about and secured to the drums. If the keys |0| and ||0 are engaged in the notches 99 and ||4 of the outer disks, the actuation of the drums ||1 v and ||8 will ble in unison inasmuch as the |59 attached to the foot portion are buckled notches 99 and 4 are similarly positioned on the drive shaft 96. This will cause the straps |53 and |54 that are buckled about the patient's waist, to be simultaneously given a downward pull on either side. When this movement is sufdciently rapid, a pulsating movement will be imparted to the straps |53 and It which, when in engagement with the body of the patient, will promote the circulation of the blood and lymphatic fluids of the body.

If the keys ||l| and |||l engage the diametrically opposed notches 99 and H5, alternate tugs will be .imparted to the strap |53. The strap |53 will be pulled downwardly during the downward rotation of the boss |24, and during this period of rotation the boss |22 on the disk 98 willbe rotating upwardly and releasing the tension on the strap |54. As soon as the boss |24 starts to rotate upwardly, the boss |22 will be starting in a downward movement to exert a pull on the strap |54. This will cause the belt to be given a sliding movement laterally across the back or shoulders of the patient lying on the table, and a massaging movement will be effected.

If the key I Hl is positioned in the notch H5, and the key |9| positioned in the notch |00 a pulsating motion will be imparted to the belts |53 and |51?. lThe notch |05 has the side |08 thereof beveled so that the key may slip out of the notch if suicient torque is applied to the disk. Inasmuch as notches |09 and ||5 are similarly positioned on the shaft, the pull on the belts |53 and |5 will be effected simultaneously. When the boss |22 on the disk 9B passes the lower position, the spring Idl pulling on the cable |43 through the drum ||8 will turn the disk 98 a part of a revolution ahead of the disk The torque applied by the spring through the drum and strap |23 will be suflicient to cause the key to slip from the notch |90 and let the disk 99 be pulled ahead of thel disk The rotation of the inner disk 92 by the circular gear 80 will cause the key to once more engage the notch |00 after a half a revolution. and engage the radial wall |09 of the notch to once'more impart rotation to the disk 98. Consequently, as soon as the disks return to a position where the bosses |22 and |24 are in their lowermost position, the action of the springs IM will again move the disk a half a revolution ahead of the drive mechanism. This will cause a strong downward pull upon both ends of the strap accompanied by a quick upward release at every revolution of the drive shaft 96. vThis movement will cause a rapid pulsating movement to be imparted to the straps 53 and |55 to stimulate and pump the blood and lymph fluids of the body forward in their natural channel. At every rotation of the drums ||ll and H8, a longitudinal reciprocatory movement will be imparted to the ,frame |45 through the pusher rods |50. In view of the fact that the straps |53 and |55 are attached to the non-reciprocating bars |2| and pulled tightly across the body of the patient, a longitudinal movement of the -frame |45 in the direction of the feet of the patient will cause a tensile stress to be applied to the portion of the body below the straps. If the disks are in the position whereby simultaneous tugs are imparted to the ends of the straps |53 and |54, the pusher rods |50 will actuate the v a U-shaped support ll terminating at its open end in looped portions |52 which receive the ends of the straps |53 and |56. A handlelG- is secured to the closed end of the U-shaped frame 26| and the roller Itis rotatably journaled between the arms of the frame IBI. When the device is buckled to the straps |53 and ld and the patient lying face downward on the mat |52, the straps |53 and |55 will impart a lateral vibratory movement to the massager and the ,operator may manually impart an axial rotation to the roller to effectively massage the patients back or chest.

It is to be understood that the form of our invention, herewith shown a-nd described is to be taken as a preferred example of the same, and

' that various changes in the size, shape and arrangement of parts may be resorted to without` departing from the spirit of our invention, or

tached to -the superstructure and to the saidl frame, a motor, a lever pivotally attached to the superstructure and engaging the frame, straps extending transversely of the frame and across a person lying thereon, and an oscillating means actuated by the motor operatively connected tc the lever to impart alongitudinal motion thereto and to the frame against the action of the said resilient means and connected to the said straps to simultaneously impart an up and down motion thereto, the simultaneous movements of the frame and `straps effecting pulsating agitation of the person lying on the frame.

2. In a therapeutic apparatus, a frame adapted to support the body of a patient, cylinders rotatably mounted on the said frame, resilient means to normally hold the cylinders against rotation, a hollow shaft rotatably carried by the frame below the said cylinders, means to rotate the said shaft, a disk carried by'one end of the said hollow shaft and rotatable therewith, a shaft rotatable within the hollow shaft, disks carried by the ends of the said second-mentioned shaft, the disk at the end adjacent the first-mentioned disk being xedly secured to the shaft and the other of the disks being independently rotatable therewith, means to detachably lock the firstmentioned disk to the xedly secured second-v mentioned disk, means to detachably lock the independently rotatable second disk for rotation with the shaft, eccentrics on the said secondmentioned disks, straps connecting the eccen-v trics to the cylinders to rotate the said cylinders against the action of the said resilient means, and straps adapted to girdle the body of the patient and having one end fastened to the cylinders so that a tensioning of the straps will be effected during each rotation of the said disks.

3. In a therapeutic apparatus, a frame adapted to support the body of a patient, cylinders rotatably mounted on the said frame, spring means to normally hold the cylinders against rotation, a hollow shaft rotatably carriedV by the frame below the said cylinders, means to rotate the said A shaft, means to manually vary the speed of rotation of the said shaft, a disk carried by one end of the said hollow shaft and rotatable therewith, a shaft rotatable within the hollow shaft,

disks carried by the ends' of the said secondv mentioned shaft, the disk at the end adjacent the first-mentioned disk being flxedly secured to the shaft and the other of the disks being independently rotatable therewith, means to detachably lock the rst-mentioned disk to the fixedly secured second-mentioned disk, means to detachably lock the independently rotatable second disk for rotation with the shaft, eccentrics on the said second-mentioned disks, straps connecting the eccentrics and the cylinders to rotate the said cylinders against the action of the said resilient means, and straps adapted to girdle the body of the patient and having one end fastened to the cylinders so that a tensioning of the straps will be effected during each rotation of the said disks.

4. In a therapeutic apparatus, a frame adapted to support the body of a patient, cylinders rotatably mounted on the said frame, yieldable means to normally hold the cylinders `against rotation, a hollow shaft rotatably carried by the frame below the said cylinders, means to rotate the said shaft, a disk carried by one end of the said hollow shaft and rotatable therewith, a shaft rotatable within the hollow shaft, disks carried by the ends of the said second-mentioned shaft, the disk at the end adjacent the firstmentioned disk being xedly secured to the shaft and the other of the disks being independently rotatable therewith, means to detachably lock the first-mentioned disk to the xedly secured second-mentioned disk, means to detachably lock the independently rotatable second diskfor rotation with the shaft, eccentrics on the said second-mentioned disks, straps connecting the eccentrics and the said cylinders to rotate the `to support the body of a. patient, cylinders roframe below the said cylinders, means to rotate the said shaft, a disk carried by one end of the said hollow shaft and rotatable therewith, a. shaft rotatable within the hollow shaft, disks carried by the ends of the said second-mentioned shaft, the disk at 'the end adjacent the firstmentioned disk being fixedly secured to the. shaft and the other of the disks being independently rotatable therewith, means to detachably lock the first-mentioned disk to thevflxedly secured second-mentioned disk, means to detachably lock the independently rotatable second disk for ro` tation with the shaft, eccentrics on the said second-mentioned disks, straps Aconnecting the eccentrics and'the cylinders to rotate the said cylinders against the action of the said yieldable means,` straps adapted to girdlethe body of the patient and having one end secured tothe said I cylinders in a manner whereby an' oscillatory movement is imparted to the said straps, a roller carried by the straps and contacting the patient,

and a handle means carried by the roller-where-` low shaft, disks mounted on both ends of the of the second-mentioned disks thereby imparting rotation to the said second-mentioned shaft.

LLOYD W. vMOREY.

EVERETT A. BUCK. 

